The Greatest of These is Love
by keslei
Summary: Short post-ep for 5x08 - Peter and Olivia reflect on what just happened between them.


**Author's Note:** The day that 5x08 aired, I had spent a good part of the morning and afternoon listening to Les Mis on repeat (in preparation for going to see it soon!), and had also been watching the ending from 4x15 over and over that evening, prior to the new episode airing, because I really needed some P/O happiness. So when I finished watching 5x08, and had stopped hyperventilating, I couldn't help but connect these quotes to what had just happened onscreen. And this is what came out of those thoughts. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **The characters and their lives do not belong to me.

* * *

_"Take my hand, and lead me to salvation; Take my love, for love is everlasting; And remember the truth that once was spoken: To love another person is to see the face of God."  
- Finale - Les Miserables_

_"I believe you could not be fully erased because the people who care about you would not let you go, and you would not let them go. I believe you call it 'love.'"  
- September - A Short Story About Love_

* * *

Their love has always defied the odds. It has traversed universes, weathered the ultimate betrayal, survived when it shouldn't have ever existed in the first place. And tonight, as cold rain pours down and the strength of that love is tested one more time, it proves its power yet again. Love is what brings her there to fight for him, and that same love brings him back to her, as it always has.

And as he collapses into her arms, simultaneously filled with love and sorrow and peace, he revels in the feelings, in the paradoxical emotions that flood his soul. His eyes fill with tears as he realizes what he almost lost, what he would have lost if she had not saved him. Without her, he would have lost her and lost Etta, and he knows now that holding on to the love they share, to the memories of what they had and the hope of what might be, is more important than anything else. His family is everything to him, and he can't believe that he almost allowed himself to lose sight of why that is, to forget that it is love that holds them together.

She holds him close as he slumps against her, whispers those three words to him, repeats them over and over in her head. _I love you, I love you, I love you..._ And her tears flow freely as all the tension and worry that have built up inside her are finally released, as she is overwhelmed by relief when she looks at him and sees her husband, not some empty shell. Since the day she crossed universes for him, she has always loved him passionately, without holding back, and though that love has nearly destroyed her at times, it has also allowed her to save him time and again. And tonight, as she gets him back yet again, she realizes that despite everything she's seen, despite all the terrible things she knows, she still believes in something. _I believe in us...you belong with me..._

Eventually, they wind up leaning against the stone balustrade, her head on his chest and his arm pulling her against him. They haven't spoken since she told him she loved him, but then again, the love that connects them is deeper than words can express, and so words are not necessary as they find their equilibrium again. As the night wears on and the square below them empties of people and the city lapses into silence, she eventually falls asleep, her head pillowed on his chest, listening to the sound of his steady heartbeat.

He gazes down at her for a long time, watches her sleep, her breathing soft and slow, her body relaxed against his. It's been days since he's slept, but he wants to hold on to this time with her, doesn't want to lose any precious minutes of loving her, now that he understands again how special a gift that is. Their world could very well end tomorrow, so tonight, he chooses to forego sleep to have these moments with her, sitting a silent vigil, watching over her and protecting her.

Sometime during those hours, he runs over the events of the past few days in his mind, viewing them from a completely new perspective, and he realizes the one fatal flaw of the tech, the flaw which the Observers therefore share - in exploiting the potential of the human brain, they have neglected to understand the potential of the human heart. And there is something there that is greater than anything the Observers could ever hope to fight. They may know everything, but in the end, without love, they understand nothing.

At a later point, he'll try to figure out how to use this realization against them, but right now he simply files it away as a reminder to himself, then resumes his watch over his wife. He knows that they will need to return to the lab soon, that Walter will be worried, but this night is for them, for their healing. In the morning, they will return to the world, but at this moment, they rest in each other's arms, having found each other again. They still have battles ahead of them to be fought, but she loves him, and he loves her, and that will be enough.

Together, they can face anything.

* * *

_"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:13_


End file.
